Imagine, HP Tighten Tech Ties

In a deal that should help Imagine Communications scale up to address the industry's ongoing IP video transition, Imagine and Hewlett Packard Enterprise have inked a broader strategic deal that will call on HPE to resell its partner’s full product portfolio around the world.

HPE will also tap Imagine as its preferred partner for software solutions in the media and entertainment segments that cover the telco and service provider markets, setting the stage for more of Imagine’s software-based systems to run on HP’s COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) servers/hardware. That will play into a more general trend in which the industry is moving away from proprietary, purpose-built hardware for functions spanning playout, compression and distribution.

In turn, HPE becomes Imagine’s preferred partner for systems integrations, a shift that will help Imagine pursue large platform deals that involve, for example, the building out of broadcast media centers and distribution centers that require large storage platforms.